SpotlightDiving Into The Riviera: Baume & Mercier Riviera Azur Dive Watch And Other Novelties At Watches And Wonders Geneva 2023
Baume & Mercier celebrate five decades of the Riviera collection with a new 300m dive watch, besides other iterations of their successful dodecagonal timepiece in various sizes
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In honour of 50 years of their Riviera collection, Baume & Mercier have launched new models of their iconic dodecagonal timepieces at the Watches and Wonders trade fair being held in Geneva this week, including a new dive watch, the Riviera Azur 300m. Here’s a lowdown on their 2023 novelties.
Riviera Azur 300m
Baume & Mercier introduced two new dive watches within their Riviera collection with a new, unique design for the unidirectional-rotating diver’s bezel. The previous dive watches within this series were 1981 models with the dial and bezel both in black. This year, the brand launched two new 42mm stainless steel dodecagonal watches with sapphire crystal dials in smoked blue or grey, with the collection’s signature wave decoration, and special-shaped hour and minute hands coated with Super-LumiNova. The dial is translucent, offering a glimpse at the self-winding Baumatic movement within, the BM13-1975A, which can also be viewed through the sapphire crystal window on the screwed down caseback. With a power reserve of 120 hours, the Riviera Azur timepieces are water-resistant to 300m.
The bezel features a blue or black anodised aluminium ring, making it easy to use, and the gradation of the first 15 minutes is lacquered blue or black. The watches are presented on an interchangeable and integrated three-row stainless steel bracelet.
Three New 39mm Riviera Watches
With the Azur, there are also new 39mm Riviera watches this year, with translucent dials, bridging the gap between their 42mm and 36mm editions. The new 39mm models are available in options of a dial in smoked grey, smoked blue, or smoked black in sapphire crystal, with the Riviera’s transparent wave decoration. The grey version features a sand-blasted titanium dodecagonal bezel with a gilded PVD steel ring in the middle of the case, and Roman numerals, indexes and faceted timekeeping hands in 5N gold. The blue one is mounted on a matching blue strap in alligator leather or rubber, while the black variant comes with an integrated three-row steel bracelet. All three timepieces are powered by the self-winding Baumatic movement BM13-1975A, with a power reserve of 120 hours.
Colours, Diamonds On 33mm And 36mm Watches
Baume & Mercier launch new dial options within their 33mm and 36mm Riviera offerings. The first, a muted, sun-satin gold dial features gilded indexes and hands, and is offset by the 12-sided bezel with four brilliant-cut diamonds set into it. The stainless steel case also features a central ring in 5N gold-plated PVD steel. The brand also released two other dial options, without diamonds and gold—a violet dial and one in azure blue, with transparent transfer waves decorated on the dial.
Hampton With An Integrated Strap
Alongside the Riviera, the Hampton collection also sees new additions this year. One has an opaline white dial and an interchangeable and integrated three-link stainless steel bracelet. The second version has a sun satin-finished blue opaline dial with a sapphire crystal window on the caseback, and the third is a midnight-blue dial version with two diamonds each at 12 and six o’clock, and 28 brilliant-cut diamonds framing the sides of the case.
